Earlier this month, the cream of the asset management world joined French President Emmanuel Macron at a mini Davos-style event at the Palais de l’Élysée in Paris to launch the One Planet Asset Manager initiative. Their collective aim was to improve understanding of environmental issues across the investment landscape.

Natixis Investment Managers was one of eight global asset managers to respond to Macron’s call and attend the event, representing a gathering of more than $15 trillion in assets at the Élysée.

As founding members of the One Planet Sovereign Wealth Fund Asset Manager initiative, the objective is to advance the understanding of the implications of climate-related risks and opportunities within long-term investment portfolios through the sharing of investment practices.

It supports the work started by the One Planet Sovereign Wealth Fund Working Group, established at the inaugural One Planet Summit in December 2017. Representatives from the six founding sovereign wealth funds also attended the event with Natixis Investment Managers at the Élysée.

Commenting on the event, Jean Raby, CEO of Natixis Investment Managers, said: “Advocating for commitment to tackle climate change is crucial. No doubt about it. Developing standards, make greater use of data, analyse climate change-related risks are part of the key steps toward for the necessary transition toward a clean energy based economy and this needs to be pursued, but tackling the root causes of climate change with concrete actions should now be the priority. How? By promoting natural capital based solutions that are designed to tackle deforestation and promote land restoration for example.

“If deforestation were a country it would be the third largest source of greenhouse gases in the world.  Deforestation is one of the most overlooked but also one of the most impactful swing factors in the fight against climate change.  It is also a key component of the fight against the collapse of biodiversity – which will be on the agenda for the G7 in August and the UN Climate Summit in September. The asset management industry, together with asset owners, corporates and governments, has a key role to play in directing capital to investments facilitating the energy transition. This is exactly what was discussed at the meeting I attended at the Elysée Palace.

“I am pleased and honoured to have had the opportunity to represent Natixis Investment Managers at this event and engage with President Macron, French Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire and French Secretary of State attached to the Minister of State, Minister of Ecological and Inclusive Transition Brune Poirson – together with CEOs and senior representatives of six large sovereign wealth funds, and seven other global asset managers that are all part of the One Planet initiative.”

Read the article in Citywire Selector (in English)

Read the article in Les Echo (In French)
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